Nazri Jameson, Pitmaster Beard Bros PJ

The Yum List finds out a few secrets from behind the scenes at Beard Brothers BBQ in an interview with chief pitmaster Nazri Jameson.

What do you do and how did you get into the industry?
I’m the proprietor and pitmaster of Beard brothers BBQ. I chose a career in the professional chef industry back in 2004 and I’ve been on the path of serving food since.

Share with us an interesting story from behind the scenes.
I’d say probably the most interesting time we had was when we opened shop at Tropicana Avenue. We were in a tight spot in terms of finances, so getting workers was not an easy task. We started off the first week with just 4 full-time staff (my two partners, our manager and me). My mom and sister including some beautiful souls were there during the nights to help out cleaning the kitchen and clearing up when everyone would be down and out. It was a sweet struggle everybody shared.

What’s the best/ worst part of your job?
The best part of the job is seeing happy guests at our place. Their smiles and approval of our Barbecue are priceless to me.

What’s one of the wildest/ craziest/ scariest/ funniest/ most outrageous (choose an adjective or pick you own) things you’ve seen behind the scenes?
Every day is full of all of these descriptions you gave. LOL.

The perfect day off would be…
with my family and I out camping or lazing on a beach on one of Malaysia’s beautiful islands… Yeah, that would be perfect.

A day in the life of a pitmaster is…
…to constantly be on my tippy toes. There is always a new challenge to face every day when you have a restaurant and stepping up to those challenges pushes me towards bettering myself. I am thankful for that.

What do you do for fun?
I do jiujitsu every week when I can. I also love the outdoors and bowhunting. I have not done much of the latter because of the biz but I see it coming soon.

What’s something you’d like guests to know about Beard Brothers BBQ?
That there are no reservations at this BBQ joint and that it takes 20 hours of love and care to prepare the meats that are served here – from prepping to the smoker to end product. And lastly, that we love every one of our guests that come by.

What’s your view on the food scene in Petaling Jaya?
It’s definitely growing into a more refined mature scene in my opinion. The age that we are in right now is a wonderful gastronomic age. It’s a good time for food.

What’s in store for you in the upcoming months?
We’re looking into expanding and diversifying the business definitely. Can’t talk much about yet but when it’s out you’ll know it.

Check out a dining experience at Beard Brothers BBQ here.